TO THE BEST OF OUR KNOWLEDGE
from Wisconsin Public Radio
September 1, 1996 Programs
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1100 - 1159 Hour #1 The Business of Business
1200 - 1259 Hour #2 Consciousness
1300 - 1359 Hour #3 Compassion
PROGRAM RUNDOWN Hour 1:The Business of Business
SEGMENT 1:
MIT economist Lester Thurow tells Steve Paulson that the
global economy is entering a new and scary phase - one
that requires massive retraining of the American work
force. Thurow is the author of "The Future of
Capitalism." Also, labor journalist Sam Pizzigati talks
with Steve Paulson about compensation ratios around the
industrialized world and why he believes that American
corporations should rein in the salary and bonus packages
they offer CEO's. Pizzigati's book is called "The
Maximum Wage."
SEGMENT 2:
Business writer Art Kleiner talks with Jim Fleming about
two forerunners of today's "total quality management"
philosopy - General Foods' Lyman Ketchum and University
of Cincinnati President Warren Bennis -- both of whom
tried to shake up traditional corporate functioning.
Kleiner is the author of "The Age of Heretics: Heroes,
Outlaws, and the Forerunners of Corporate Change."
SEGMENT 3:
Illinois Institute of Technology sociologist Christina
Nippert-Eng studies people's work values. She tells
Judith Strasser about "integrators" (bring the dog to
work!) and "segmenters" (I don't play softball with
people from the office!) and how their key rings and
calendars give them away. Christina Nippert-Eng is the
author of "Home and Work."
For cassette copies of this hour, call 1-800-747-7444, and ask for program number
09-1-A.
PROGRAM RUNDOWN Hour 2:Consciousness
SEGMENT 1:
David Chalmers says understanding the actions of neurons
in the brain still doesn't explain consciousness. He
tells Steve Paulson that he thinks consciousness is a
fundamental property of nature - like space or time.
Chalmers teaches philosophy at the University of
California at Santa Cruz and is the author of "The
Conscious Mind: In Search of a Fundamental Theory."
Also, New York University neuroscientist Rodolfo Llinas
(pronouned yee' nas) tells Judith Strasser about the
scanning mechanism in our thalamus that helps the brain
time tag sensory input and reintegrate separate bits of
information into a coherent mental image.
SEGMENT 2:
James Bailey tells Steve Paulson that computer engineers
have abandonned the human brain as the model for
designing artificial intelligence. They're now building
silicon systems whose IQ potential may be unlimited. Is
this the greatest intellectual development since
language, or is Hal waiting in the wings? James Bailey
ponders questions like that in his book "After Thought:
The Computer Challenge to Human Intelligence."
SEGMENT 3:
Harvard University psychologist Daniel Schacter
specializes in the role and functioning of human memory.
He tells Jim Fleming how memory is organized in the brain
and why it's not always reliable. Schaacter is the
author of "Searching for Memory: The Brain, the Mind, and
the Past."
For cassette copies of this hour, call 1-800-747-7444, and ask for program number
9-1-B.
PROGRAM RUNDOWN: HOUR 3: Compassion
SEGMENT 1
Psychiatrist Cort Pederson talks with Jim Fleming about
the biological basis for benevolence -- the hormone
oxytocin. Cort Pederson teaches psychiatry at the
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Also, Marvin
Olasky tells Steve Paulson that compassion really means
"suffering with" and recalls some philanthropic efforts
from America's past. Olasky teaches journalism at the
University of Texas and is the author of "The Tragedy of
American Compassion," and "Renewing American Compassion."
SEGMENT 2:
Hope Meadows is a pioneering foster care community in
Illinois that encourages parents to work toward adoption
of their foster children and also involves senior
citizens. Founder Brenda Krause Eheart and participating
parents Kenneth Hill and Tami Pederson tell Steve Paulson
stories about the community's success.
SEGMENT 3:
John Hutchinson teaches history at Simon Fraser
University and is the author of "Champions of Charity:
War and the Rise of the Red Cross." He tells Judith
Strasser that the Red Cross was founded by a small group
with interests in philanthropy, religion and battlefield
surgery and was criticized by no less a figure than
Florence Nightengale for allowing nations to evade the
human consequences of their wars.
For cassette copies of this hour, call 1-800-747-7444, and ask for program number
9-1-C.
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Last modified: Friday August 30, 1996